THERE are 20 per cent fewer potholes, cracks and other defects on Essex's roads compared to three months ago, latest figures show.
According to the quarterly figures released on Friday the number of defects has dropped from 1,280 to 1,073 on Priority 1 roads, and from 3,296 to 2,590 on Priority 2 roads since April this year.
However the same figures show that defects on local roads has in fact risen from 11,674 to 12,972 in the same period.
County Councillor Rodney L Bass, Cabinet Member for Highways and Transportation, said: "This is excellent news following a prolonged period of intensive work to bring Essex's priority routes up to the standard our residents expect.
"We wish to build on this success and that is why we have 20 extra four-man crews on the roads aiming to fix all current carriageway defects on the Priority 1, Priority 2 and rural local road networks by 31 March 2015.
"We are also aiming to tackle the worst 700 urban local roads during this period, dealing not only with carriageway work but also with pavements, drains, curbs and other street furniture."
The figures also show that more than 8,300 defects have been repaired across the three networks over the last three months.
